Sproles stands tall in Chargers' win

By: MIKE SULLIVAN - Staff Writer | Saturday, August 18, 2007 10:29 PM PDT ∞

ST. LOUIS ---- If Darren Sproles needs to excel as a punt returner to remain employed by the Chargers, he greatly increased his chances in Saturday's preseason contest against St. Louis.

The diminutive Sproles returned a punt 81 yards for a touchdown in the final minute of the first half, a play that energized the Chargers and helped them notch a 30-13 victory over the Rams before 58,288 at the Edward Jones Dome.

Sproles broke two tackles to get into the clear and cruised the final 45 yards to give the Chargers a 14-0 lead with 37 seconds left in the half.

"It felt real good to finally get me one," Sproles said of his touchdown return. "I seen their whole team was all on the right side and I seen the lane to cut back. I saw that lane and it was wide open."

The Chargers evened their exhibition season mark to 1-1, partly because of the efforts of Sproles.

The 5-foot-6, 181-pound Sproles also made a nice offensive contribution during a third-quarter touchdown drive. On third-and-8 from the Rams' 32-yard line, Sproles caught a pass in the right flank near the line of scrimmage and motored upfield for 8 yards and a first down. Four plays later, Billy Volek hit rookie tight end Scott Chandler for an 8-yard scoring pass to give the Chargers a 20-6 lead with 13:30 remaining.

"He catches the ball on that third down and it looks like it's no gain," said Chargers coach Norv Turner, "and bang, he makes one guy miss. He has that ability."

Sproles missed last season after suffering a broken left ankle in an exhibition game against Green Bay. He has regained his swiftness after an arduous rehabilitation effort and has been impressive this preseason. In the opener against Seattle, Sproles had 63 yards rushing and caught four passes for 36 yards.

He's aware of the speculation regarding his future, but refuses to get caught up in the debate.

"I'm going to go out and play my game," Sproles said. "That's all I can do. I can't worry about that."

The Chargers have fewer things to worry about after beating the Rams (1-1). The defense held St. Louis' high-powered first-team offense scoreless despite prolonging the Rams' opening drive with untimely penalties. Also, Turner feels the team's overall play was better than last week's showing against Seattle.

"The No. 1 thing I was looking for, obviously, was that improvement I think you make from Game 1 to Game 2, and I believe we did that," Turner said. "I thought we did an awful lot of good things.

"Obviously, in the first half, I thought we sustained the first drive, which was very good. We created a turnover, which was very good.

"Obviously disappointed on both sides that we had penalties we have to correct ---- whether it be the false starts or the penalties on third downs that allowed them to continue drives. That will be a big area of emphasis this week."

On St. Louis' opening drive, the Chargers helped the Rams remain on the field for the first 7:05 of the contest before forcing a turnover. Twice, the Rams got a reprieve after failing to convert a third-down play ---- once when Shawne Merriman was called offsides; the other when cornerback Drayton Florence drew a defensive holding penalty.

But the Rams came up empty on the 13-play drive when linebacker Shaun Phillips forced fullback Madison Hedgecock to fumble after catching a short pass.

Merriman recovered the ball and advanced it 10 yards to the Chargers' 29.

The Chargers' first-team offense then crisply moved its way downfield on a 10-play, 71-yard scoring drive.

The touchdown came when Philip Rivers (9-of-13 for 82 yards) tossed a 5-yard touchdown pass to Vincent Jackson.

Michael Turner rushed for 38 of his team-high 48 yards on the drive, including an impressive 17-yard dash in which he ran over Rams linebacker Will Witherspoon.

Later, Rivers scrambled away from the pressure of the Rams' James Hall and found Antonio Gates for 28 yards to the St. Louis 4. Two plays later, Jackson caught the touchdown pass at the back of the end zone.

St. Louis' second drive also ended in a turnover. The Rams moved from their own 21 to the Chargers' 25 and Marc Bulger (8-of-12, 79 yards) then attempted to hit Torry Holt, who created distance from Florence. But strong safety Clinton Hart read the play perfectly and intercepted the pass in the end zone.

"I was just eyeing the quarterback and he led me to the ball," Hart said. "I was just basically playing the defense and being in the right spot. Not doing too much, just doing exactly what you're supposed to."

The Chargers led 14-3 at halftime and saw St. Louis pull within 20-13 on Gus Frerotte's 7-yard touchdown pass to Marques Hagans, but got no closer. They pulled away when Germaine Race rushed 13 yards for a score with 5:05 left and Nate Kaeding kicked a 22-yard field goal with 41 seconds left.

Contact staff writer Mike Sullivan at (760) 739-6645 or msullivan@nctimes.com.

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